Story: The Legend of the Lei Tree

It was a chilly morning in the forest, and while most animals were still asleep, a golden tiger was marching determinedly through the undergrowth. He was on his way to meet an old friend, as he did everyday, on top of a hill just beyond the trees. 

Eventually, the tiger reached the base of the hill and began to climb upwards, and once he got to the top he sat beside a lei tree. 

(The tree, source) 

“So, what's the word Lei?” The tiger asked, looking up towards the tree’s leaves. 

The tree began to droop its branches in response but didn’t speak. 

This worried the tiger and he spoke to the tree again, “Are you alright Lei? What’s the matter?”

After being asked a second time the tree replied to the feline, its voice beginning to crack, “The men in the village came yesterday to cut me down. But they got tired and left, to come back today and finish the job.” 

As the lei tree spoke the tiger finally noticed the large gash in its’ trunk and rushed to inspect it further. After a few moments he licked the bark and looked up towards his friend. 

“That should fix it,” he smiled. 

Instantly, the the lei’s broken trunk began to reform as if the wound had never been there. The tiger was magical, and one of his gifts gave him the ability to heal. 

The lei’s drooping leaves sprang up happily, “Thank you tiger! I will always remember this!” 

The tiger only nodded and turned to sit beside the tree once more. The two talked for an hour or so before they bid farewell and the tiger stalked back to his home. 

Unfortunately, later that day, the men came back and began to chop at the tree again. They were determined to do away with the lei since it was creating a shadow over their crops, and causing them to wither and die. However, they grew tired like the day prior and went home. 

The next day the tiger returned to the hill and found the tree shedding leaves as it sobbed. The tiger knew exactly why and went to lick the lei tree’s bark to heal it once again. 

This cycle happened for a few days, and on the fourth day the tiger went to lick the bark but was stopped by the tree itself. 

“DON’T!” the tree yelled, “the men found out that you’ve been healing me, and they placed sharp blades in my bark to harm you!”

The tiger recoiled sharply and grimaced thinking about what could have happened. However, he couldn’t just let his friend be chopped down. As a result,  he inspected the tree further and attempted to dig out the blades. Unfortunately it was in vain. 

The tiger frowned and thought for a moment before coming up with an idea to wait for the villagers to arrive. Once they did he jumped towards them, growling menacingly. 

They froze as the tiger spoke, “I won’t harm you if you remove the blades you placed in the bark of this tree." 

The men looked at each other contemplating what to do. Eventually, they explained their reasoning for cutting the tree, and the tiger came up with a compromise. 

He informed them of his magic, and then used it to create a break in the tree’s leaves so that sunlight could get through. This pleased the men and they left, never giving the tree trouble again. 

Author's Note: I tried to keep aspects of the original story, such as the villagers trying to cut down the lei tree and the tiger healing it overnight. However, I added the part about the tree and tiger being old friends. I also created a happy ending where the the villagers leave the tree alone. In the actual story it ends up being chopped down, and the tiger cuts its tongue on the blades. 

Bibliography: "The Legend of the Lei Tree," by Mrs. K.U. Rafy from the Khasi Folktales Unit